greenough



(No Model.)

G. G. GREBNOUGH. REGoIL cHBoK PoR GUN GARRIAGES.

No. 462,484. Patented Nov. 3, 1891.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

GEORGE G. GREENOUGH, OF THE UNl'lED STATES ARMY.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 462,484, dated November 3, 1891.

Application tiled December 13, 1889. Serial No. 833,826. (No model.)

To @ZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, GEORGE GORDON GREENOUGH, of the United States Army, now stationed at Fort McPherson, Fulton county, in the State of Georgia, have invented a new and useful device for checking the recoil of held-pieces or siege and other guns and for relieving the strain upon their gun-carriages thereby occasioned, of which the following is a description.

The well-known recoil of field-pieces, with its attendant evils, has long since attracted the attention of artillerists, and numerous devices have been suggested to take up the recoil or counteract in part its effects; but I am not aware that the defect has been materially amended or the carriage relieved from the severe strain of the recoil in firing.

My device is intended to remedy these defects and hold the piece in position without the complex apparatus of recoil-cushions, springs. or other devices so liable to get out of order that have heretofore been attempted, by a simple and cheap construction, easily worked, and not liable to derangement, that is easily repaired, and that relieves the carriage from the shock of the discharge without rigidity in holding. I attain these purposes by the devices illustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a sectional elevation of the earriage and gun with the left-hand wheel removed. Fig. 2 shows a coupling to hold and regulate the length of the chord or tensionrod c. Fig. 3 is a plan of the gun-carriage and anchor.

The reference-lettersare used in all the figures to designate like parts.

A indicates the gun; B, the gun-carriage. These should be made in the most approved form; but my device can be applied to any carriage to which it is suited. That is no part of my invention. The trunnion plate or seat and cap-square surrounding the trunnion should be strong, and in front formed into a ring or other device to receive a hook or otherconvenient fasteningon the upper end of a bar b, by which the parts are readily united. The barb extends forward from that point to the ground, as clearly seen in Fig. l, and termnates in a spade or other suitably-formed anchor h', that stands nearly at right angles to the shank of bar b, and is so shaped as to readily enter the ground. It should have a flat or concave face to hold by. 'The bar h, extending up to the carriage on one side, has a duplicate or counter bar b connecting with the opposite trunnion. These bars and anchor can be made in one piece, or the anchor divided and coupled at their junction, or otherwise. Near the spade h a tension-rod c is coupled with each bar b at c and extends back to the trail of the carriage. These rods c are so formed that they can be made longer or shorter in any convenient way, so as to be drawn taut, when the anchor is in the ground, to hold it. i

To effect the tightening I employ a lever l or au equivalent device. This leverl maybe pivoted to the trail of the carriage, the tension-rod being attached to the lever at a propel' distance from the tulcrum, so that when the lever is drawn back the chord or tension-rod c is tightened. The lever may be held by bringing the connecting-point ot the tension-rod with the levert below the liuc ot the pivot or fulcrum, as seen in the drawings, where the lever rests on stop m. ver the tension-rod is freed, and the anchor can then be readily raised from the ground. The rod c, if made in two parts, can be contracted or lengthen ed according to the inclination of the ground by a series of holes, as seen in Fig. f3, or by any other well-known or convenient way. The rod c and the barb, or either, may have a yielding coupling, if desired, to relieve the sudden percnssive strain if the ground-anchor is not found to be entirely sufficient to take up the shock of the recoil. The tension-rod may be suspended by a chain or link ci to the trail of the carriage. Chains maybe substituted in part for the rods or bars when applicable without changing the character ot' the invention.

The anchor and its several attachments should be so formed as to be readily thrown back upon the trail or uncoupled and packed upon the carriage and as readily coupled for action. The spade can be easily raised from the ground by freeing the tension-rods, and by tightening them the spades are held down. The spades, when made separately, can be united by a bolt or clamp at c', where the tension-rods are connected with the bars b,

By raising the ley IOC or be used sopnrnlolymno from ouch 1 rnnnon, T as dosorihocl, combined with tho Lrunnions of x if found more :nlvzlntngoons in aiming, hohl- :L g'nn byn direct; connection extending from in g, 0r working,T tho gun, o1.' tho bnr van ho ono toho othonns Specified, hynhioh thecnrattached to the oentor nnchr tho gnn when L ringo, nxlo, and whools nro roliovod from the single bar is nsod. principal strain :unl concussion in rng.

Hoving thus not forth my nvonton, T I). Tho combination of nn :nwhorbn1,gnn z olanlcarl-ingo trail, und oonnocti11g-chord forming-n I. The combination ol' :L Spmo or xpndos russ to resist tho notion of Hao roool upon anchored in front of tho axle, am hfscrihod, tho curl-ingo, ns specified. n 'ith the` Your ond of ih@ trail of n gnn-oznf- (L (L GRHENOUGIL rlngo by moans of n roll oxtondlno from tho anchor to the trail, snbsmntnlly :la :unl for \\'itnossc^s: tho purposes Spoeil'od. J'. .Il Gr-:nnNomnn 2. The anchors phnfod in Vroni of In? nxo, L H. I5. FUmlAN. 

